Prairie State Wire

The number of Illinois beaches that had hazardous water quality for at least one out of four sampling days in 2020 was 12, according to a new analysis of bacteria data in 29 coastal and Great Lakes States as well as Puerto Rico.

Beaches in the state that were tested for fecal indicator bacteria in 2020 numbered 41, the Environment America Research & Policy Center reported in its water quality report this month.

In Cook County, Evanston Clark Beach was cited as having one of the highest percentages of potentially unsafe swimming days statewide in 2020: 18%.

Nationwide, more than one of every 10 beaches tested for bacteria levels was potentially hazardous to swimmers on at least one-quarter of the days that sampling took place last year, the study found. Beach pollution can happen as a result of runoff from paved surfaces, overflows from sewage treatment plants and pollution from livestock operations, the report states.

Waterborne illnesses resulting from swimming in oceans, lakes and other bodies of water affect 57 million Americans annually, according to Environment America.

Gulf Coast beaches had the highest potential of testing unsafe for at least a single day in 2020: 82%. For West Coast beaches, the percentage was 72%; Great Lakes beaches, 60%; and East Coast beaches, 47%.

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Incidence of Unsafe Water Quality at State Beaches in 2020

State	# of Beaches Tested in 2020	# of Beaches With at Least 1 Potentially Unsafe Day	# of Beaches With at Least 25% Potentially Unsafe Days
Alabama	24	21	8
California	258	193	42
Connecticut	65	46	11
Delaware	23	4	1
Florida	266	185	13
Georgia	26	17	3
Hawaii	218	55	14
Illinois	41	32	12
Indiana	21	18	1
Louisiana	23	21	10
Maine	61	36	15
Maryland	62	34	6
Massachusetts	556	264	29
Michigan	196	69	15
Minnesota	46	23	2
Mississippi	21	21	16
New Hampshire	16	9	3
New Jersey	210	34	2
New York	340	172	15
North Carolina	210	87	7
Ohio	54	49	14
Oregon	19	18	14
Pennsylvania	8	8	2
Puerto Rico	34	28	5
Rhode Island	65	30	13
South Carolina	23	20	7
Texas	61	55	31
Virginia	49	29	4
Washington	74	41	6
Wisconsin	96	70	7

Source: Environment America Research & Policy Center